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55 Cancri
AKA 55 Cancri AB, this system is close to the Pollux Corridor in the Praezorian Sector, though it is off the hyperspace portal map; for planning, settlement, and policing purposes, it is considered part of the Pollux Corridor region of space. 55 Cancri has been subject to both human and Praezorian interest, and has been a locus of illegal activities, piracy, and Praezorian raiding operations. On official Star Navy maps of the Praezorian Sector, this system is known as 55 Cancri, but within system and increasingly among starfarers in the Pollux Corridor, the two stars are known as Acheron and Hel, and the system itself is known--a bit humorously--as the Hell System. It is 41 LY from Sol, and roughly 5 AU from the nearest star in the Pollux Corridor (off Pollux itself). 55 Cancri A (Acheron) is a yellow dwarf, a rare super metal-rich star, and has five comparatively rich planets, which were once known by the names of astronomers, but due to that practice becoming too widespread in the planetary-discovery era, the names were later changed to better fit the character of the region. 55 Cancri B is a red dwarf, and had most of its orbital materials stripped off of it by its larger neighbor. Like the rest of the Pollux Corridor, 55 Cancri is policed by the player ship ERS Gryphon, and this star system is integral to their storyline. Scarab (55 Cancri Ae) Also known as the Hell Diamond, Scarab is 55 Cancri’s innermost planet and its most notable feature, a carbon planet with mountains of diamond and lakes of hydrocarbons. The planet is intolerably hot and dangerous to even the best equipment, but the human desire for carbon resources has drawn many starfarers to try. It is the innermost planet around Acheron and tidally locked, making its night side safer by far. This planet was known as Janssen in 21st-century astronomical circles. Belphegor (55 Cancri Ab) Belphegor is a hot Jupiter, perilously close to its host star (about 0.1 AU), with no large moons and an atmosphere that is slowly being evaporated by Acheron. It is yellowish orange in color and sometimes visible at sunrise or sunset from other planets and moons, as a super-luminous morning or evening star. This planet was known as Galileo in 21st-century astronomical circles. Styx (55 Cancri Ac) Styx is a small gas giant, orbiting about 0.2 AU from its star. It has several small rocky moons which were mined aggressively by the Praezorians. Temperatures around Styx can be intolerably hot for human beings, and as much of its resources have been strip-mined, it is considered to be of limited interest. Pirates have been known to use the moons for caches and exchanges, however. This planet was known as Brahe in 21st-century astronomical circles. Paradiso (55 Cancri Af) Paradiso orbits Acheron at about 0.8 AU, spending the entirety of its orbit within the habitable zone of its star. It is a small, Saturn-like gas giant with water clouds and numerous watery moons, on which it exerts limited tidal forces. Paradiso's moons host some life, and were once the home or colony of an extinct civilization. The Praezorians have aggressively restricted human egress onto these moons, perhaps to prevent their new allies from discovering what happened to this species. Star Navy reports indicate that the civilization may have become an enslaved or "trophy" race of the Praezorians, before a cataclysm of some sort destroyed them. It is unknown whether they are extinct from the rest of the galaxy, or if some vestige of them still exists somewhere in the Praezorian Empire. Ruins on the planet, seen by starfarers and Star Navy personnel, indicate that the species was advanced and had made it to space, but that they might not have originated at 55 Cancri. As a species, they are known only as the Paradisians. Paradiso's many moons are named for heavenly planes in human mythologies: Nirvana, Valhalla, Empyrean, Vilon, Araphel, Araboth, Jannah, Tian, Tusita, Svarga, and Aukumea. This planet was known as Harriot in 21st-century astronomical circles. Elysium (55 Cancri Ad) Elysium orbits at 5 AU and possesses 19 metal-rich moons and beautiful water clouds. Several of its moons are still metal-rich due to their high tectonic activity and prime for mining and possible settlement, though Elysium’s gravity is very high. All of its moons are pushed and pulled by Elysium, causing them to spew material up from their mantles, which leads to a large amount of useful materials for life moving into their atmospheres, and helps to raise their temperature due to the expulsion of greenhouse gases and chemical heat. They are still quite cold, however, and life on them generally requires arcological or underground settlement. Its moons are named for types of lilies; chief among them are Asphodel, Ostara, Calla, Aurelia, Corsica, Victoria, Euryale, Nymphaea, and Convallaria. Asphodel The moon is a well-known drop site for smugglers and other runners, and possible pirating activity. More recently, a group of conservative religious starfarers have stated a desire to settle there, as the name “Elysium” matches their word for the Promised Land. Convallaria Convallaria is a freezing moon of Elysium, with a great deal of tectonic activity and a wispy atmosphere of carbon dioxide. It is tidally-locked with Elysium, and the planet-side receives too much radiation, but its planet-dark is comparatively livable. The central plain of this region, known as Convallaria Plain, is the best spot for such settlement and for mining. Convallaria is a rocky planet with a fair amount of water ice from Elysium’s clouds, and carbon spewing from its interior. Human settlement has been on Convallaria for about a year, due to efforts made by Gaiacore and its foundations to incentivize further settlement in 55 Cancri, with money from Parliament to discourage piracy and raiding activities at and around 55 Cancri. Its dome must be seated on earthquake-safe housing which allows it to rock during Convallaria’s frequent earthquakes. It is one of the best mining sites known to humanity for bauxite (aluminum ore) and nickel, the latter of which comes from melting in the moon’s mantle. This mining is very hazardous, however, and until recently the mining operations here were mostly robotic, until robots gained citizenship. Bauxite and nickel are both used extensively in arcology building, and they are essential to continued human expansion